Dear Editor – Now that the arguments about Mr Moti’s claim for compensation had stopped for a while, I wish to raise some points concerning Mr Moti’s appointment to the past of the Attorney General.
I have no legal background at all, but when I looked through relevant section of the Solomon Islands Constitution I have no doubts, in my mind, that the appointment of Mr Julian Moti to the post of the Attorney General was improper, unprocedural, unconstitutional and therefore illegal.
First of all, Moti is not a Solomon Islander, neither a citizen by birth etc… and he did not apply for the post of the Attorney General but he was personally chosen by Mr Sogavare who was the Prime Minister then.
Now the post of the Attorney General is a public office and whoever is appointed to the post is provided for under section 42(2) in the constitution of Solomon Islands.
It is not a political appointed post and there is no provision provided for under the constitution that the Attorney General can be a personal choice of the Prime Minister.
The post of the Attorney General was still occupied by a local public officer at that time but he was removed by Mr Sogavare because Mr Sogavare wanted Mr Moti to take over the post.
The story also had it that Mr Moti was taken to the Government House for appointment. By who? It is not a constitutional function of the Governor General to appoint the Attorney general.
May I ask, where about in the constitution that gives the Governor General the function to appoint the Attorney General? If the story is true that Mr Moti was taken to the Government House for appointment then Mr Moti was not appointed under section 42(2) in the constitutions.
Can the judicial and legal service commission verify that story as well as, how Mr Moti was appointed and by who?
My next part of the story on this issue is, whether or not Dr Derek Sikua who took over from Mr Sogavare as Prime Minister, has the power to remove Mr Moti from the post of the Attorney General.
In the mean time, I stand for correction for what I have pointed out above.
Romano Nongebatu
Munda
